In preparing to help Ukrainian refugees, the West must not divert aid from other poor countries also suffering the war’s aftermath, warned the head of a major humanitarian organization, the Norwegian Refugee Council.
“In my 40 years as a humanitarian, I have never seen three million people displaced by war and conflict every week for a month,” Secretary-General Jan Egeland told AFP in an interview.
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, more than 10 million people, a quarter of the population, have fled their homes. Of them, about 3.8 million fled the country in a flow that has slowed in recent days.
Poland has taken in more than half, but Romania, Moldova (one of Europe’s poorest countries), Hungary and Slovakia have also taken in hundreds of thousands each.
Volunteers, institutions and NGOs are doing their best to help them.
“I saw the year 2015 that started with +Refugees, welcome to Europe+ earlier in the year when people arrived across the Mediterranean.”
“And then I saw how it ended with the European barbed wire-raising championship, where every country fought to avoid protecting women and children fleeing terror and violence in Syria, Afghanistan and elsewhere,” he recalled.
“In six or nine months there won’t be that much volunteerism and that’s why we need government services to take care of that,” he warned.
– The fallout from Ukraine –
According to Egeland, the European response to Ukraine’s needs has been “very good so far”.
“The appeal from Ukraine totaled $1.7 billion and came immediately as a humanitarian appeal for funding. It was fully funded within days,” he said.
“I wish we had received the same response to the Yemeni appeal to even more people who were even poorer in Yemen (…) They asked for $4.2 billion and we received less than for Ukraine” , he regretted.
The fundraiser, launched March 16 for Yemen alone, reached $1.3 billion to help 17.2 million people in this war-torn country on the brink of famine.
“There is no doubt that a war in Europe is terrible bad news for the poorest people in the Sahel,” he said. “Everything has become more expensive.”
“The wheat they got from Russia and Ukraine may not arrive. Prices have gone through the roof. Fuel is much more expensive and our operations are much more expensive.”
“At the same time, some donors are diverting funds from very poor countries to Europe,” he added.
Observers fear a shortage of wheat could spark food riots in the Middle East and North Africa.
According to the United Nations, wheat prices have already surpassed prices at the start of the 2007-2008 Arab Spring and unrest.
“And thirdly, we are now seeing the cold war between powers with whom we have to work together on Security Council resolutions,” Egeland said.
“How will we have resolutions on Syria in the future if Russia and the United States can no longer cooperate?” he asked.
– Forgotten crises –
“We must protect humanitarian budgets,” Egeland proclaimed.
In Ethiopia, Afghanistan or Somalia, humanitarian workers say “how overwhelmed they are, how stressed they are when emergencies arise and nobody seems to care”.
“So this is our challenge: to respond to the great needs in Europe and particularly in Ukraine, while also responding equally to the needs elsewhere.”
Every year, the Norwegian Refugee Council ranks the world’s most neglected crises.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo topped the 2020 list, ahead of Cameroon, Burundi, Venezuela and Honduras.
“I wish that the flow of resources to Ukraine, the volunteering for Ukraine, the willingness to welcome, protect and help Ukrainians would be reflected in emergencies elsewhere, from Syria to Ethiopia, from Afghanistan to Venezuela “, he said.
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